We want all Kansans to get involved with this site and commit to make changes that improve your physical well-being through:

• Increasing your physical activity levels to at least 30 minutes five days each week
• Eating a healthy, nutritious diet (including five daily servings of fruits and vegetables)
• Stop using tobacco products, or significantly reduce your consumption

To take that first step toward becoming a Healthy Kansan, I invite you to Take the Healthy Kansas Pledge on this site. It’s easier than you think to make changes in your health by using the activities above to make positive health changes in your life.

Come back often to this site as we announce resources, and events across this great state to bring children, adults and seniors together to make a Healthy Kansas.

LIVE TOBACCO-FREE with the 33rd Annual Great American Smokeout®!

Living tobacco-free is a critical part of your health journey. If you’re like most tobacco users, you’ve thought about quitting for health reasons, aesthetic reasons, financial reasons, or for the safety and benefit of loved ones. If you’re struggling to make the decision to quit or struggling to find lasting success with your decision to quit, even the odds Thursday, November 20, 2008 during the 33rd Annual American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout®.

If you’re a tobacco user and are ready to quit, take advantage of the strength in resources and make Thursday, November 20, 2008 your “Living Tobacco Free” anniversary. You won’t be alone. In partnership with the American Cancer Society, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) offers the FREE Kansas Tobacco Quitline at 1-866-KAN STOP (or 1-866-526-7867).

A Quitline coach will work with you to create an individual plan for quitting through one-on-one over-the-phone counseling sessions. The Quitline is available 24 hours a day/7 days a week in English, Spanish, and 150 other languages.

In addition to protecting your health, the money you save by quitting could be substantial. For example, a person who smokes a pack a day spends about $31.50 each week on cigarettes. This is equal to $135 a month, $1.643 a year, or $16,425 over ten years.

Curious to see how much you spend on tobacco products? The American Cancer Society provides an online calculator to help you add it up.

Whatever the inspiration is, seize the moment. Make Thursday, November 20th your “Living Tobacco Free” anniversary!